Pietro Longhi
Pietro Longhi (1702 or November 5, 1701[1] – May 8, 1785) was a Venetian painter of contemporary scenes of life.
Biography
Pietro Longhi was born in Venice in the parish of Saint Maria, first child of the silversmith Alessandro Falca and his wife, Antonia. He adopted the Longhi last name when he began to paint. He was initially taught by the Veronese painter Antonio Balestra, who then recommended the young painter to apprentice with the Bolognese Giuseppe Maria Crespi, who was highly regarded in his day for both religious and genre painting and was influenced by the work of Dutch painters. Longhi returned to Venice before 1732. He was married in 1732 to Caterina Maria Rizzi, by whom he had eleven children (only three of which reach the age of maturity).
Among his early paintings are some altarpieces and religious themes. His first major documented work was an altarpiece for the church of San Pellegrino in 1732. In 1734, he completed frescoes in the walls and ceiling of the hall in Ca' Sagredo, representing the Death of the giants. Henceforward, his work would lead him to be viewed in the future as the Venetian William Hogarth, painting subjects and events of everyday life in Venice. The gallant interior scenes reflect the 18th century's turn towards the private and the bourgeois.
Many of his paintings show Venetians at play, such as the depiction of the crowd of genteel citizens awkwardly gawking at a freakish Indian rhinoceros (see image). This painting, on display at the National Gallery in London, chronicles Clara the rhinoceros brought to Europe in 1741 by a Dutch sea captain and impresario from Leyden, Douvemont van der Meer. This rhinoceros was exhibited in Venice in 1751.[2] There are two versions of this painting, nearly identical except for the unmasked portraits of two men in Ca' Rezzonico version.[3] Ultimately, there may be a punning joke to the painting, since the young man on the left holds aloft the sawed off horn (metaphor for cuckoldry) of the animal. Perhaps this explains the difference between the unchaperoned women.
Other paintings chronicle the daily activities such as the gambling parlors (Riddoti) that proliferated in the 18th century.[4] In some, the insecure or naive posture and circumstance, the puppet-like delicacy of the persons, seem to suggest a satirical perspective of the artists toward his subjects. Nearly half of the figures in his genre paintings are faceless, hidden behind Venetian Carnival masks.[5] Like Crespi before him, Longhi was commissioned to paint seven canvases documenting the seven Catholic sacraments.[6]
Longhi is well-known as a draughtsman, whose drawings were often done for their own sake, rather than as studies for paintings. Pietro's son, Alessandro, was also an accomplished painter.
A paraphrase of Bernard Berenson states that "Longhi painted for the Venetians passionate about painting, their daily lives, in all dailiness, domesticity, and quotidian mundane-ness. In the scenes regarding the hairdo and the apparel of the lady, we find the subject of gossip of the inopportune barber, chattering of the maid; in the school of dance, the amiable sound of violins. It is not tragic... but upholds a deep respect of customs, of great refinement, with an omnipresent good humor distinguishes the paintings of the Longhi from those of Hogarth, at times pitiless and loaded with omens of change".
From 1763 Longhi was Director of the Academy of Drawing and Carving. From this period, he began to work extensively with portraiture, and was actively assisted by his son Alessandro. On 8 May 1785, following a short illness, he died, possibly due to a heart attack.
Works
- San Pellegrino sentenced to execution, 1730–1732, oil on canvas, 400x340, parish church of San Pellegrino
- Adoration of the Magi, 1730–1732, oil on canvas, 190x150, Venice, Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista
- Fall of the giants, frescoes, Venice, Ca 'Sagredo, 1734,
- Shepherd sitting, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x48, Bassano, Museo Civico
- Pastorello standing, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x48, Bassano, Museo Civico
- Shepherdess with flower, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x48, Bassano, Museo Civico
- Shepherdess with cock, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x48, Bassano, Museo Civico
- Pastorello standing, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x45, Rovigo, Museo del Seminario
- The spinner, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The laundresses, 1740, oil on panel, 61x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The happy couple, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The polenta, 1740, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- Drinkers, 1740–1745, oil on canvas, 61x48, Milan, Galleria d'Arte Moderna
- The concert, 1741, oil on canvas, 60x48, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The dance class, about 1741, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The tailor, c. 1741, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The toilet, ca 1741, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The presentation, about 1741, oil on canvas, 64x53, Paris, Louvre
- The visit to the library, about 1741, oil on canvas, 59x44, Worcester Art Museum
- Frescoes, 1744, Venice, Church of San Pantalon
- The awakening of the knight, 1744, oil on canvas, 49x60, Windsor, royal collections
- The blindman's buff, 1744, oil on canvas, 48x58, Windsor, royal collections
- Fainting, 1744, oil on canvas, 49x61, Washington, National Gallery
- The game of the pan, 1744, oil on canvas, 49x61, Washington, National Gallery
- The visit to the lady, 1746, oil on canvas, 61x49, New York, Metropolitan Museum
- Meeting of the Prosecutor and his wife, 1746, oil on canvas, 61x49, New York, Metropolitan Museum
- The visit to the Lord, 1746, oil on canvas, 61x49, New York, New York, Metropolitan Museum
- The milliner, 1746, oil on canvas, 61x49, New York, Metropolitan Museum
- Family group , 1746, oil on canvas, 61x49, London, National Gallery
- The visit of the Prosecutor, c.1750, oil on canvas, 61x49, London, National Gallery
- The Dentist, c.1750, oil on canvas, 50x62, Milan, Brera
- The laundresses, c. 1750, oil on canvas, 61x50, Castle Zoppola, Pordenone
- The polenta, c.1750, oil on canvas, 60x50, Castle Zoppola, Pordenone
- The spinner, c.1750, oil on canvas, 61x50, Castle Zoppola, Pordenone
- Drunks, c.1750, oil on canvas, 61x50, Castle Zoppola, Pordenone
- The spinner, c.1750, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
- The spinners, c.1750, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Querini Piancoteca Stampalia
- The peasant woman asleep, c.1750, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
- The seller of fritole, c.1750, oil on canvas, 62x51, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The rhino, 1751, oil on canvas, 62x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The rhino, c. 1751, oil on canvas, 60x57, London, National Gallery
- The soothsayer, 1752, oil on canvas, 62x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The school work, 1752, oil on canvas, 62x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- Geography lesson, 1752, oil on canvas, 61x49, Venice, Fondazione Querini Stampalia.
- The pharmacist, 1752, oil on canvas, 60x48, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The tickle, 1755, oil on canvas, 61x48, Madrid, Thyssen Collection
- Baptism, 1755, oil on canvas, 60x49, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
- The charlatan, 1757, oil on canvas, 62x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- Alchemists, 1757, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The Card Players, 1760, oil on canvas, 60x47, Milan, Galleria d'Arte Moderna
- The Music Lesson, 1760, oil on copper, 45x58, Baltimore , Walters Art Gallery
- Philosopher Pythagoras, 1762, oil on canvas, 130x91, Venice, Gallerie dell'Accademia
- The cabin of the lion, 1762, oil on canvas, 61x50, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
- Francesco Guardi, 1764, oil on canvas, 132x100, Venice, Ca 'Rezzonico
- The arrival of the Lord, c.1770, oil on canvas, 62x50, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
- The family Michiel, 1780, oil on canvas, 49x61, Venice, Pinacoteca Querini Stampalia
Notes
References
- Martineau, Jane, and Andrew Robison (1994). The glory of Venice: art in the 18th century. London: Yale University Press. ISBN 0300061862
- Spike, John T (1986). Centro Di, Kimball Museum of Art, Fort Worth, Texas, USA. ed. Giuseppe Maria Crespi and the Emergence of Genre Painting in Italy. pp. 189–206.
External links
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Pietro_Longhi Pietro Longhi] at Wikimedia Commons
Persondata |
Name |
Longhi, Pietro |
Alternative names |
|
Short description |
|
Date of birth |
November 5, 1701 |
Place of birth |
Venice |
Date of death |
May 8, 1785 |
Place of death |
Venice |